TURNERS FALLS — Franklin County Technical School presented its fiscal year 2023 budget plan to the Gill and Montague selectboards and finance committees Monday evening, with notable budget increases accounting for staff growth, a new school bus and expanded classroom space.
The total projected budget is nearly $14.4 million, a 6.7% increase from the roughly $13.5 million fiscal year 2022 budget, compared to the previous year’s increase of around 6.9%. Aside from a few areas of need that saw a spike in budget allocation, most categories maintained regularity with previous years’ trends.
“Everything else is pretty much steady, holding the same,” said Franklin Tech Business Manager Russ Kaubris.
The “Plant Operations and Maintenance” category saw a 16.5% increase from $934,225 in FY22 to nearly $1.1 million in FY23 to accommodate potential building expansion and the addition of a custodian.
“We are utilizing every square foot of the current footprint of our building,” Kaubris explained. “We no longer have an assembly hall — we converted that into four classrooms. We are seriously looking at adding modular classrooms next year.”
“We’re actually overcrowded as it is,” Superintendent Rick Martin added.
The school, which now serves 583 students, has seen its enrollment steadily increase since 2016, when it had 437 students enrolled, according to data from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
The “Pupil Transportation” category increased by 10% from less than $1.1 million in FY22 to nearly $1.2 million in FY23 to accommodate the addition of a bus route and accompanying school bus.
“We were on the verge of needing an additional school bus this year, and with the additional students, I think we’re going to need that additional school bus,” Martin said.
The “District Leadership and Administration” category saw a 4.7% increase from $760,232 in FY22 to $796,160 in FY23 to accommodate the addition of a combined curriculum administrator and dean of students, who will work full-time between the two part-time roles. One full-time dean of students position already exists. Kaubris said the additional position will help address anticipated behavioral and emotional issues post-pandemic isolation in Franklin Tech’s growing student body.
Similarly, the “Instructional Services and Curriculum” category increased by 8% from nearly $6.7 million in FY22 to about $7.2 million in FY23 to accommodate the addition of teachers and staff in response to enrollment growth.
Franklin Tech’s School Committee will vote on the proposed FY23 budget on Wednesday, March 9. The meeting, which will start at 7 p.m., will be held in person at the school.
Reach Julian Mendoza
at 413-772-0261, ext. 261 or jmendoza@recorder.com.
An earlier version of this article inaccurately stated how Franklin County Technical School’s March 9 School Committee meeting may be accessed. The meeting will be in person at the school starting at 7 p.m.